MyPa provided a litmus test for Arsène Wenger's theory that Blackburn operate with "a hint of violence" when they emerged at Ewood Park on Thursday night. Wearing not only Arsenal colours for the Uefa Cup qualifier but a replica of the kit Wenger insinuated was soaked in blood following his latest trial in Lancashire, the Finns chose an unfortunate attire for a dinner date with the supposed beast that is Rovers.

And therein lies the problem that continues to drive the manager, Mark Hughes, to distraction. Many might expect violence from Blackburn, though their number is dwindling to those who base their assessment on the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal in 2005 or those managers deprived of victory in pursuit of Champions League football. But, as MyPa discovered this week, quality is now the dominant colour in Rovers' make-up.

David Bentley's long-awaited and deserved graduation into the full England squad arrived yesterday as Blackburn secured an inviting Uefa Cup first-round draw against Larissa of Greece. These are further indications of the progress Hughes has made in almost three years at Ewood Park but signs easily ignored under the weight of past reputation. "We can cope with the physical side of the game, because that is always there in the Premier League," the Blackburn manager said this week, "but we can play football as well."

Blackburn are undefeated in seven matches this season, a sequence that began in the Intertoto Cup against FK Vetra on July 22, and for a team with an alleged predilection for violence theirs is a squad that does not resemble the heavy mob - not with Robbie Savage as a ring-leader anyhow. Bentley's drive and delivery is complemented by Morten Gamst Pedersen on the left and a team that can also call on the velvet touch of Tugay, the penetration of Benni McCarthy and now the effective Roque Santa Cruz is developing rapidly into one to be respected.

As Brad Friedel, the American goalkeeper who has witnessed a transformation ahead of him since Hughes replaced Graeme Souness, said: "I think, for one of the first times since I've been at the club, man for man we were every bit as good as Arsenal, if not better than them, walking out in the tunnel the other week.

"When we finished sixth a few years ago, we had a very, very good squad, with Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Damien Duff and Matt Jansen. But I think this squad is probably even stronger and that's why for the first time since we've lined up against Arsenal I think we matched them.

"That's a big difference from playing against the likes of Bergkamp, Vieira, Overmars, Petit, Adams and Keown. I'm not taking anything away from Arsenal. They are an outstanding team but I think our squad has got a lot stronger. When we go into games now, we feel that we should be getting points every time."

Sir Alex Ferguson has cited Blackburn and Everton as two of the likely candidates to threaten the big-four monopoly on the Champions League places this season. Hughes was aggrieved at his side's 10th-place finish last season, although that campaign was blighted by injury to a squad also stretched with the demands of reaching the last 32 of the Uefa Cup. He has quietly and effectively improved his resources this summer.

Only Santa Cruz, a £3.8m recruit from Bayern Munich, and the Dutch Under-21 international Maceo Rigters have joined but Rovers were not in need of a radical overhaul. They are a tightly run model that is now attracting interest from foreign consortia and arguably Hughes' finest move of the summer was ensuring McCarthy remained at the club.

They are, in terms of wide appeal and support, polar opposites of the Manchester City they face at Ewood tomorrow yet all Sven-Goran Eriksson currently aspires to be; established in the top half of the Premier League and a consistent threat in domestic cup competitions.

"We have started badly and still ended up in the top half in previous seasons so, if we can keep things going now, that could be crucial at the end of the season," Hughes said. "We break the season up into different phases and for the first one we are ahead of things at the moment. We said that with the Intertoto games leading into the season, the extra competitive fixtures should help us. When the Premier League started, we knew we could hit the ground running and we will get better."